1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the redesign of a distressed component that operates in a machine under thermal and structural loads, and more specifically to a process for re-designing a distressed component used in a gas turbine engine.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
A gas turbine engine, such as an industrial gas turbine engine used to produce electric power, is a very complex piece of machinery. The design of components used in the engine, such as compressor blades, rotor blades, and stator vanes are not precisely designed at initiation into the engine. Because of the operating environment of the gas turbine engine, it is not common that a single part can have a perfect design in which the part will achieve or exceed its design life in the engine. Due to the fact that an industrial gas turbine engine must operate for very long time periods before a scheduled shutdown occurs (typical time period between scheduled shutdowns can be as high as 24,000 hours) all the components of the engine must be designed for a long life. If a component such as a rotor blade or compressor blade encounters premature failure, significant damage to the engine and its components can occur. The result is a distressed engine component with one or more worn or damaged portions. A distressed engine component is defined to be an engine component that has a design flaw that results in that component having a shortened life.
Since components in a gas turbine engine can be very expensive to replace, some engine operators have chosen to purchase replacement components from non-OEM suppliers (Original Equipment Manufacturers), because these components are typically less costly. However, a typical non-OEM component supplier will only copy the original component. If the original component (distressed component) has a design flaw (such as the component cracks prematurely) or is not as efficient as possible, then the replacement component will not perform any better than the original manufactured component. There is a need in the gas turbine engine field to be able to provide for a replacement component of an engine that will provide a longer life cycle in the engine and also improve the performance of the engine in order to reduce the life cycle cost of the engine.